Trading is the quickest way to take your team from sitting on the bubble of a playoff berth to a championship contender, or vice-versa if you make the wrong deal, which is why it is so important to make sure you are targeting (and selling) the right players at the right time.
And yes - every player has a price. It doesn't matter whether they are the best player in fantasy football or a dwindling kicker - every player has a price that they should be traded away for or should have something given up to get. If you don't know what the value of your players is, head over to our Trade Charts!
For people in leagues that are more active in trading, this is for you - these are our top 5 trade bait pieces based on the "buy-low, sell-high" approach with players highlighted likely to see a decrease in value in the near future due to difficult matchups, surrounding injuries, improving/changing scenarios, etc:
1. Raheem Mostert - RB, Miami Dolphins
There may not have been a more blatant "sell high" opportunity in fantasy football history than we have here with Raheem Mostert.
Mostert's coming off a 142-yard, 4-TD, 45-point performance where he did not lead his team's backfield in carries, touches, opportunities, rushing yards, total yards, or fantasy points. That is unheard of with that type of stat line.
For as good as Mostert has been to start the season, posting a TD and 13+ points in each of the first three games of the season (including 120+ yards and 25+ points in the last two games), he is as far from secure as his production would indicate. He's gotten over half (50.1%) of his production from TDs and has seen 54% of his production come inside the redzone.
Is Miami a good team? Absolutely. Will Mostert continue to get TD opportunities? Yes, but nowhere near at this unsustainable pace.
Mostert is a must-sell after his monster game with him losing a grip on a true 'lead back' role now that De'Veon Achane is healthy (who saw a 41.1% snap share to Mostert's 50.7% in Achane's first full game) and Jeff Wilson Jr. nears a return from I.R. in Week 5.
I rarely advocate for "actively shopping" a player (as you typically lose a little bit of trade leverage in doing so), but I am actively shopping Mostert in an attempt to get top-15 RB value out of him. In a dream scenario, I'm flipping him for a solid RB2 plus capital or packaging him with an RB/WR in an attempt to grab an RB1.
2. Zack Moss - RB, Indianapolis Colts
Moss has been nothing short of exceptional for fantasy owners since beginning his 2023 season in Week 2. He posted a 22-touch, 107-yard, 1-TD (20.7 points) performance in his season debut and then followed that up with a 32-touch, 145-yard, 1-TD (22.5 points) performance in Week 3.
That level of volume, especially on such a run-focused (and effective) offense is a rarity and typically something to hold on tight to, but a Jonathan Taylor return is nearing - and yes, Jonathan Taylor will almost certainly return to the Colts. The trade market is non-existent for an RB rental, especially at the reported asking price of the Colts, and Taylor has zero leverage to refuse to play and pay millions while letting his contract be deferred a year under the new CBA.
I'm looking to try and get low-end RB2/FLEX value out of Moss via trade this week.
3. Puka Nacua - WR, Los Angeles Rams
It's a similar story to Moss, just in a different position. Puka Nacua has flourished as Matthew Stafford's go-to guy with Cooper Kupp out, leading the league in targets (42), ranking 2nd in catches (30), and 4th in receiving yards (338) through the first three weeks. He was exceptional in Weeks 1 & 2 with 22+ points in each game but was very underwhelming in Week 3 (7 targets, 5 catches, 72 yards) which was salvaged by a 37-yarder in the final minute.
All signs currently point towards Cooper Kupp returning in Week 5 once eligible off of I.R. and I am more pessimistic than most on what a potential Kupp return may mean for Nacua. Do I believe Nacua will be fantasy-irrelevant once Kupp returns? Not necessarily, but I would find it difficult to put him in my lineup until proven otherwise.
Is the potential there for Nacua to be solid even with Kupp? Yes, we've seen the Rams' offense sustain multiple top-15 WRs in 2018 (Robert Woods, WR11 & Brandin Cooks, WR13) and 2019 (Cooper Kupp, WR4 & Robert Woods, WR14).
Is the potential there for Kupp to reaggrevate his hamstring and leave Nacua as a likely league-winner? Yes, we've seen that type of scenario happen numerous times before where a WR returns prematurely from a hamstring injury that lingers and forces him out for an even more extended time.
Both of those are possibilities, but neither of them is a scenario that I want to bank my season on. I'm going to take what I can get with Nacua, thank him for being a huge contributor through three weeks, and take the WR2 trade value that I can likely get out of him before news surfaces on Kupp and kills Nacua's trade value.
4. Jerome Ford - RB, Cleveland Browns
I was an advocate to trade Ford last week before a potential RB signing and it came to fruition (Hunt). Even with his value on the trade market being less than at that point, I still would encourage looking to flip Ford after a Week 3 performance that saw him finish with 19.1 points (RB7 on the week) but was severely inflated thanks to two TDs.
That will be the best-case scenario (TD Dependency) for Ford going forward in a much different-looking Browns' offense without Nick Chubb. With the shift more toward the passing game and a heavier emphasis on Deshaun Watson having to play 'hero ball', I don't see the consistency in workload (or production) to validate Ford keeping value and being a stable lineup option, especially with him receiving just 56.3% of the snaps in Kareem Hunt's first game back with the team. That number will likely float around there (or even decline) as Hunt becomes more involved and gets back into game shape.
I'd look to flip Ford for a more stable RB2/FLEX or package him alongside another RB/WR in an attempt to secure a high-end RB2/WR2 option (i.e. Alvin Kamara).
5. Pat Freiermuth - TE, Pittsburgh Steelers
This is absolutely nothing against Freiermuth as a player (I am actually much higher on him than almost anyone in terms of his talent/abilities), but this comes back to the Steelers' offense (or rather, the lack thereof).
Through three games, Freiermuth is the TE15 with 21.6 points - that wouldn't be horrific if not for the fact that he has 5 catches on the year and got 15.6 of his 21.6 fantasy points on TD plays. This Steelers' offense is much worse than what anyone could've anticipated coming into the season, especially after the red-hot preseason, and it has had a direct impact on Freiermuth's production.
The good news is that Week 3 saved Freiermuth from being talked about as a potential drop candidate with his 3-catch, 41-yard, 1-TD (13.1 points) performance. Do I think he and the Steelers' offense will turn it around to an extent? Yes, but I don't foresee a situation where he can live up to the preseason expectations we had for him.
With a rough schedule coming up (7th-worst SOS over the next 4 games, 5th-worst remaining SOS), the offensive issues in Pittsburgh, and the saving grace of a TD in Week 3, I'd likely try to sell Freiermuth for a more stable TE1 option, even going as far as packaging an RB/WR with him to try and secure a more formidable option (i.e. LaPorta)